
When Covid Deaths Aren’t Counted, Families Pay the Price
Inaccurate and incomplete death certificates hurt those seeking relief, recourse and closure after a loved one dies.

More Than 2,900 Health Care Workers Died This Year — And the Government Barely Kept Track
The National Academy of Sciences cites journalists’ “Lost on the Frontline” project in a push to expand federal tracking of worker fatalities.

“Lost on the Frontline” is an ongoing project by Kaiser Health News and The Guardian that aims to document the lives of health care workers in the U.S. who died from COVID 19, and to investigate why so many are victims of the disease.

Next Showdown in Congress: Protecting Workers vs. Protecting Employers in the Pandemic
Democrats want to bind employers to follow a safety plan, while Republicans seek to shield employers and doctors from lawsuits.

Families of Health Workers Killed by COVID Fight for Denied Workers’ Comp Benefits
Attorneys say some state workers’ compensation laws leave workers and families struggling for benefits after a COVID illness or death.

Workers Filed More Than 4,100 Complaints About Protective Gear. Some Still Died.
As health workers were dying of COVID-19, federal work-safety officials filed just one citation against an employer and rapidly closed complaints about protective gear.

Exclusive: Nearly 600 — And Counting — US Health Workers Have Died Of COVID-19
The Guardian and KHN release new figures Saturday showing the harsh toll that the pandemic is taking on the front-line health workers.

Bringing ‘Poogie’ Home: Hospice In The Time Of COVID-19
One family took up the challenge of taking their mother, who had serious medical problems and the coronavirus, from the hospital to die at home. But because of the risk of infection, home hospice can be a daunting experience.

How Climate Change Is Putting Doctors In The Hot Seat
Health care providers are seeing the effects of climate change in hospitals across the U.S. ― and urging their peers to take action.

On The Eve Of Retirement, VA Nurse Succumbs To COVID-19
Nurse Divina “Debbie” Accad had cared for veterans for over 25 years and was set to retire in April. But after contracting the novel coronavirus, she spent her final 11 days on a ventilator — and didn’t survive past March.

Nurse At Nevada VA Dies After Caring For Infected Colleague
Nurse Vianna Thompson, 52, spent two night shifts caring for a fellow Veterans Affairs health care worker who was dying from COVID-19. Two weeks later, she too was lying in a hospital intensive care unit, with a co-worker holding her hand as she died.

Beyond Burnout: Docs Decry ‘Moral Injury’ From Financial Pressures Of Health Care
Doctors and other clinicians say they’re enduring moral injury because the business of health care interferes with patient care.

‘I Feel Like I’m In Jail’: Hospital Alarms Torment Patients
As alarms proliferate, hospitals are working to sort through the cacophony that can overwhelm staff and cause them to overlook real signs of harm.

‘Fear Of Falling’: How Hospitals Do Even More Harm By Keeping Patients In Bed
In what experts call an “epidemic of immobility,” older hospital patients remain stuck in bed, their movements tracked by loud and ineffective bed alarms, losing muscle mass that’s key to their health and daily functioning.

Genetic-Testing Scam Targets Seniors And Rips Off Medicare
Capitalizing on the growing popularity of genetic testing — and fears of terminal illness — scammers are persuading seniors to hand over cheek swabs with their DNA, not knowing it may lead to identity theft and Medicare fraud.

En secreto, adultos mayores hablan del “suicidio racional”
Es un tema tabú, pero algunos adultos mayores comienzan a hablarlo. Se trata de la posibilidad de terminar con sus vidas pero no por depresión o desesperación, sino como una decisión pensada.

In Secret, Seniors Discuss ‘Rational Suicide’
Running counter to the efforts of suicide prevention experts and many religious and social norms, some seniors are quietly exploring the option of turning to suicide when they feel they’ve lived long enough.

Miracle Machine Makes Heroic Rescues — And Leaves Patients In Limbo
The use of ECMO, the most aggressive form of life support in modern medicine, has skyrocketed — but along with miraculous rescues, it can leave patients in limbo, kept alive with machines but with no prospect of survival outside the ICU.

A Final Comfort: ‘Palliative Transport’ Brings Dying Children Home
In a rare but growing practice, some hospitals offer parents the choice to transport their dying children out of the intensive care unit, with life support in tow, so that they can die at home.

‘Stonewall Generation’ Confronts Old Age, Sickness — And Discrimination
For a generation of LGBTQ people who lived through unprecedented social change, getting older poses new challenges — lack of services, discrimination, neglect and even abuse.